Playing Around

I've been playing around with the Blogger Design templates this evening and rather like this one. The colors are to my liking; I am, at heart, an "earth-toned" person.  Besides, I like this particular header background; it seems appropriate now that the ducks and geese are arriving in our area.

It's easier to make changes to the template than I realized and, as fickle as I am, this may not be the last change. 

I would welcome your comments and opinions of the newly selected design.

Other Stuff

I've been a busy bee. It's time for another rubber stamping group activity sponsored by myself and my stamping partner.  In a week's time, 22 ladies will meet to make four cards each of six separate Christmas designs.  I'm responsible for preparing the materials, sample cards and instructions for three of the designs; my partner will do the same for the other three.  My card designs required that I cut almost 900 separate pieces of card stock, plus 88 pieces of ribbon.  The designing and cutting are done, thank goodness; all that remains is to assemble the pieces for four of each card and put them in "baggies" for distribution to the participants. 

In other stamping activities, I made a fancy-dancy 50th wedding anniverary card (much, much more complicated than my usual designs) for my sister and her husband in Virginia. I putzed around with it for almost 2-1/2 hours trying to make it look like I had envisioned.  I hope they like it; I'm not likely to make another one of the same sort for some time -- if ever.

Also, I'm trying to design a variety of masculine "Thinking of You" cards. My grandson "M" shipped out last week to boot camp at the United States Coast Guard training center in Cape May, NJ.  I think he needs mail from his grandmother every week.  He is 19, is Gardening Daughter's only male child, and bears part of my name.  No, he's not a boy named "Sue." His middle name and mine are the same -- Allen.

[My mother had already decided what my first name would be, if I were a female child, (which I was) but was struggling to find a middle name that she liked for her first born.  She was so relieved to be delivered of me after 48 hours of labor that she chose the last name of her attending physician (Dr. George W. Allen) for my middle name.  It's caused all sorts of confusion over the years, especially among government officials who think the "Allen" in my name is my maiden name. I often have to pull out my birth certificate to assure them that it's part of my given name.]

We haven't heard from "M" except for the obligatory form letter letting us know that he arrived and giving us his mailing address.  I hope we have a newsy letter from him soon; I'm anxious to know how things are going.   The only advice I gave him before he left was to eat the food that was set before him when it was set before him. I suspect that he'll need all the energy he can get. He's tall and very slender and could use a few pounds on his frame.

It's finally turned "chilly." I had to turn on the furnace for a while this morning. When I awoke, the temperature inside the house was below 60 degrees. That's too cold for me and the cats.

I wish you a pleasant weekend, wherever you are.